I’ve mentioned before, Llywydd, that in Newport we’ve been having meetings for quite some time now, which I’ve been very pleased to convene, between the local health board, and public health particularly, Newport Live, which is the leisure trust, Newport City council, housing associations, including Newport City Homes, which took the stock transfer and the major estates from Newport City Council, sports clubs and a range of others. The purpose of those meetings is to try and get Newport’s population more physically active and healthier. I hope very much that Welsh Government might support some of those initiatives coming out of those meetings, to see whether they’re effective and they work and might be rolled out across Wales, because I do believe we need pilot schemes to test some of these partnerships. Because it seems to me that, unless we build partnerships of real width, and indeed of depth, we’re not going to get the large-scale change we need to get Wales more physically active and healthy, with all the obvious benefits that brings.

We need to get on the front foot with health, rather than being largely reactive, and I believe a more physically active population is a big part of that effort. So, I think similarly for active travel we need a whole-system partnership if we are going to make active travel for short journeys the routine choice. We will need planners to get on board, and we will need local authorities and public sector employers in terms of the way they facilitate their staff to make active travel journeys to work and from work. We will need schools, of course, perhaps to do even more around safe routes to schools, cycle training, and I hope sometimes the provision of bikes for children in more disadvantaged circumstances who haven’t got bikes, perhaps through some community schemes where bikes are donated, repaired and made useable again. Also, of course, the voluntary sector and Welsh Government. We talk about whole-sector partnerships if we’re going to have large-scale change; I think that applies to physical activity generally, and it applies to active travel as well. So, I hope that’s the spirit within which we can take action forward at Welsh Government level, local government level, and with all the key partners after this debate takes place today.

We heard earlier, Llywydd, from Lee Waters, in opening the debate, of the great benefits and the radical nature of the active travel Act. Well, can I say, Llywydd, that as the Minister who had the privilege of taking the active travel legislation through the Assembly and putting it on the statute book, I very much agree with my colleague Lee Waters and, I’m sure, many other speakers in this debate today? I do believe it’s radical. I believe it could deliver a step change in terms of physical activity and health, the environment, the economy and general quality of life in Wales. So, given that promise, that potential, I hope very much that, after today, we will go on to implement the Active Travel (Wales) Act 2013 fully, enthusiastically and in a timely manner. Diolch yn fawr.